The invention relates to a method of managing, in a telecommunication network, user data of a user who may move from a base work area associated with a base exchange which comprises base memory means to another work area associated with another exchange which comprises other memory means.
A method of this type is disclosed in various GSM (Group Speciale Mobile) recommendations, such as GSM 03.03, 03.08, 11.30, 11.31 and 11.32. According to the method described therein, the base memory means associated with the base exchange (Home Location Register or HLR) comprise all the data of the user who, normally speaking, is located in the base work area associated with the base exchange. If the user moves to the other work area associated with the other exchange, only those data which are required for handling calls and for other purposes (which are of importance for the user temporarily located in said other work area) are copied out of the base memory means (HLR) into the other memory means associated with the other exchange (Visitor Location Register or VLR). Under these circumstances, the base memory means (HLR) function as "master" memory means and the other memory means (VLR) function as "slave" memory means, some user data thus being present in two different memories while the user is located in the work area associated with the other exchange. If the user moves to a further work area associated with a further exchange, again only those data which are required for handling calls and for other purposes (which are of importance for the user temporarily located in the said further work area) are copied from the base memory means (HLR) into the further memory means (VLR) associated with the further exchange, the base memory means (HLR) again functioning as "master" memory means and the further memory means (VLR) functioning as "slave" memory means. The base memory means (HLR) therefore always function as "master" memory means, while all the other memory means (VLRs) always function as "slave" memory means, at least as regards this user.
A known method of this type has the disadvantage that some user data are present in two different memories while the user is located in another work area associated with an exchange other than the base exchange, which takes up memory capacity and consequently reduces the efficiency of the method, and that, if the user continues to move to successive work areas, the data required have to be copied over ever greater distances from the base memory means (HLR) to succeeding memory means (VLRs), which reduces both the reliability and the efficiency of the method.